Rep. Beto O'Rourke visits 8 Harris County polling places for the start of early voting

Now, O'Rourke is going on an early voting blitz Monday. He'll be visiting a total of eight polling locations throughout Harris County.

Author:
Michelle Michelle Choi, Melissa Correa

Published:
6:01 AM CDT October 22, 2018

Updated:
10:15 PM CDT October 22, 2018

HOUSTON – Congressman Beto O'Rourke made his own push at the polls Monday with the start of early voting.

The Democratic candidate got people fired up about early voting, stopping at eight voting locations in Harris County in 9 hours.

"I’m just fortunate enough to be a part of something that people are making happen right now," O'Rourke said Monday at one polling location.

Supporters stayed on message with little to no mention of Republican opponent Ted Cruz.

Alyssia Torres, 19, was at one polling location O’Rourke visited and voted in her first election.

“A lot of people think their vote doesn’t matter,” Torres said. “But when I was in my government class, my teacher says every vote does matter.”

A parking lot pep rally is exactly what one Houston family needed to vote in one more election.

“I’ve been voting for as long as I could,” said Ali Jadidi. “I’m a Houstonian from Iran. A Houstonian for 45 years.”

A record was set Monday for the biggest turnout in Harris County for the first day of early voting in a midterm election.

“That’s extraordinary,” O’Rourke said. “I love it. Yeah. It’s a great sign. It reflects the enthusiasm that we’ve seen all along the way in Harris County, in Fort Bend, in Montgomery. Everywhere that we’ve been.”